Results:Cut purchase of hazardous items from $4.9 million to $2 million;
reduced inventory of hazardous items from $3.2 million to just $414,000;
significantly reduced generation of hazardous waste.

Contact Information:Listed at the end of the case study.

Practicing environmentally preferable purchasing applies not just to
items purchased, but also to the amount purchased, and when. McClellan
Air Force Base teamed with the U.S. General Services Administration
(GSA) and its suppliers to develop new contracts for unit-of-use purchasing
and just-in-time delivery, in response to a mandate issued by the U.S.
Air Force in 1993 that all facilities reduce hazardous waste generation. By employing
environmentally preferable purchasing principles, such as purchasing smaller
quantities of supplies only when needed, McClellan reduced its inventory
of hazardous products from $3.2 million to $414,000 and significantly
reduced hazardous waste generation.

Taking Inventory of the Situation

In July 1993, McClellan took
the first step toward decreasing its hazardous waste by forming the Hazardous
Material Support Center (HMSC), which combined the experience of personnel
from procurement and supply, bioenvironmental engineering, and environmental
management. This group evaluated the base's current products inventory
and discovered $3.2 million of hazardous materials such as paints, primers,
epoxies, and sealants used to maintain and repair aircraft. Eighty percent
of these materials had been stored beyond their expiration dates and were
no longer usable. The group also discovered that while buying large drums
of materials enabled the base to take advantage of bulk discounts, only
very small quantities (about 3 ounces) were needed at a time, which left
most of the material to be wasted. This increased disposal costs, which
eliminated any cost savings resulting from the bulk purchases.

Feedback from mechanics and
maintenance personnel confirmed HMSC's findings and helped the group determine
ways to reduce expired and unused materials. Many of the products had
to be mixed prior to application, increasing exposure risk to workers
and requiring additional supplies and labor time to mix and test the product.
If not mixed exactly right, the entire solution- up to 55 gallons
worth- often would have to be disposed of. In light of these revelations,
HMSC asked the mechanics what the procurement division could do to make
their job easier. Their answer was to purchase premixed solutions in smaller,
easier-to-use quantities.

Armed with this information,
HMSC met with the GSA office in Auburn, Washington, and one of its vendors.
Their combined efforts resulted in the implementation of two contract
mechanisms, unit-of-use and just-in-time delivery, now used widely at
Air Force bases and throughout the aerospace industry.

Unit-of-Use

To address the issue of large
quantities of hazardous materials expiring before being used or being
wasted due to improper mixing or handling, the vendor agreed to repackage
primer and paint products in 3-ounce containers, the amount most frequently
used for touch-up jobs. The kit, similar to a fountain pen, contains the
required ingredients in proper proportions and is a combined mixing container
and applicator. This revolutionary packaging saves money, increases productivity
by easing application and reducing labor, lessens exposure risks to workers,
and eliminates hazardous waste. Using the repackaged primer alone saved
McClellan $26,000 per year in material, labor, and disposal costs.

In return for the supplier's
repackaging efforts, HMSC promised to get national stock numbers for each
of the new products on the GSA Supply Schedule and to promote the products
to others. The overwhelmingly favorable response by procurement officers
led the vendor to offer two more sizes of the primer, 2-ounce and 6-ounce,
and to drop the price by about 60 percent. The vendor has since repackaged
other products such as frozen cements, sealants, and adhesives, all of
which are now being widely used at U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) and
non-DOD facilities.

Just-in-Time Delivery

Eliminating overstocking, expiration,
and storage concerns, McClellan included just-in-time delivery language
in its contracts, indicating the frequency with which products should
be delivered. Rather than order a year's worth of supplies in large containers
to be delivered at once, McClellan now receives smaller shipments of smaller-quantity
products only when needed, either quarterly, monthly, or weekly"just
in time" for the project at hand. This method ensures the products
are on hand when they are needed rather than having them sit in a warehouse,
possibly expiring before they can be used.

The Results

Since McClellan adopted an
environmentally preferable purchasing perspective and implemented unit-of-use
and just-in-time delivery contracts, the base has reduced its generation
of hazardous waste drastically while saving money, time, and labor; reducing
exposure of toxic materials to workers; and eliminating storage needs
and shelf-life problems. With 50 such contracts in place, McClellan cut
its purchase of hazardous materials from $4.9 million in fiscal year 1995- one
third of which was wasted- to $2 million in 1999, with almost no hazardous
waste being generated. In addition to less hazardous waste polluting the
environment, the base reduced other wastes from mixing and dividing the
contents of large barrels into smaller quantities, including protective
equipment for workers, mixing containers, bottles, labels, and hazardous
waste drums.

Lessons Learned

HMSC members are extremely
proud of the accomplishments they achieved at McClellan. They feel the
most important step in improving procurement habits and adopting environmentally
preferable purchasing practices is working together to evaluate problems
and identify needs. By asking the people most familiar with the products
being used, HMSC discovered a better way to order supplies. "All
you have to do is get out of your chair and ask," said Mari-Ann Weidig
of the HMSC and McClellan's procurement division. Looking for workers'
input and having their best interests at hand helped HMSC and the procurement
division gain the trust of the workers- an added bonus to the achievement
of reducing hazardous waste.

Working with GSA and the manufacturer,
HMSC was able to find solutions that were beneficial to all. Bringing
together all parties involved in the supply line helped each participant
better understand what was needed to create a positive change. The ideas
and solutions became part of the contract. "There isn't anything
you can't write into a contract," Weidig advised.

In the end, everyone gained
from the experience. McClellan achieved its goal to reduce hazardous waste
and save money, the manufacturer gained added sales opportunities with
aerospace facilities, and GSA became better equipped to serve its customers
with added national stock numbered items. Just as important, the combined
efforts help to protect the environment and human health and further demonstrate
the advantages of environmentally preferable purchasing.